Since my parents' death, my older brother and I have been living in
our parents' house here in San Francisco.  As of last week, my brother
told me he is going to sell the house.  Every time I ask him if our
parents left the house in a will and if so, did they leave it to both
of us he always manages to avoid answering the question.
  My question is:  Is there a way to find out if my parents left a
will and if I am in it?  Is this acessable public information?
                                          Thank you.

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Clarification of Question by badride47-ga on 11 Aug 2005 20:28 PDT

First, let me thank the two subscribers that lent their opinions and
information to my question regarding finding out if you are in a will
or trust after your parents die and you are still living in your
parents' house but an older sibling wants to sell it but won't tell
you the ownership status of the house.  Both opinions, however,
assumed that either the older sib inherrited or was the executor.
According to Public Record, title to the property still resides in the
Mother's name (as she survived the Father).
Therefore, if nothing has been done since the Mother's passing,
besides the fact that the older sib is obviously making a power play
for the property, what options are available to the younger sib and is
there a way to equitably transfer title via the "inherritance route"
without setting off a "Probate alarm"?  In any case can you suggest
the proper procedure for transferring title and/or for the younger sib
to unilaterally proceed if necessary?

My first reaction is as it is not clear that your brother owns the
house, then there is no way he can sell it. (as in you cannot sell
something which you do not own)

I would however IMMEDIATELY seek out the advice of a good probate lawyer.
Mongolia

I would immediately head down to your parents lawyers and demand to
see the will as they must have a copy or you could get a court order
to force your brother or whoever handles their estate to reveal the
contents of the will and quickly before your brother makes any rapid
or hasty decisions.

You can also use this site to find out about the record on the
property at the county recorder's office:

http://www.sfgov.org/site/assessor_index.asp

I am assuming that your brother has probated the estate and had
himself named as the executor. Go to the probate court and see what
they have on file with regard to your parents. You will need their
full name, DOB, and DOD. It is public information and you can make a
copy of the file for a small fee.

If probate has not been started then you need to talk to an attorney.

First go to town hall or to your county records office (wherever deeds
are filed) and find out who owns the property.  If it is still in one
or both of your parent's names, at least you'll know that it can't be
sold without an Executor's Deed. A title company will not accept an
Executor's Deed without a current and valid certificate of Letters
Testamentary or Letters of Administration, either of which would
indicate that the holder (perhaps your brother) had been duly
appointed to collect and distribute the estate's assets. If the
property is in your brother's sole name, you can research the records
to find out how he got title. If it is by an Executor's Deed, you
should be able to find the file (and the info you seek) at the local
probate court.